Timephoon: The Aftermath
by soulfulsin
Summary: Spoilers for Timephoon. Louie has a few things he needs to get off his chest.
1. Chapter 1

Notes:

Spoilers for Timephoon!

I feel like they've been tiptoeing over Della abandoning them for the entire season and I was glad that Louie said something, even if it was shouted in anger.

* * *

Louie glowered at their room. He couldn't believe their mom had sent him to his room and grounded him. Who did she think she was? _Uncle Donald_? What right did she have to do anything when she'd ditched them for ten years and then showed up out of nowhere? She hadn't even explained _why _she'd left them. This was total crap. Why should he listen to her? Yes, okay, everything that had happened had been his fault, but the others had been willing to forgive and forget. Where did she get off saying otherwise?

Louie fumed, stretched out on the lowermost bunk. He had no outlet for his rage and resentment. Yeah, okay, Della was their mom biologically, but she hadn't earned that right or that respect. Again, she'd blown here out of nowhere and she expected them to act like everything was normal. Forget that. Nothing was normal.

The others were outside doing whatever and he seethed. They got to move about, free and unencumbered. Right now, he hated their guts. The only person he hated more than his siblings right now was their mom. He turned over on the bed and folded his arms across his chest.

No one had come in here to check in on him, either. They didn't care. Yes, okay, he'd blasted them all out of existence for a while. And yeah, it was because he'd been running a con. Maybe the "get rich quick" schemes were a bit long in the tooth. But so what?

His thoughts swirled, returning to Della and Uncle Donald again and again. Uncle Donald had been there for them. He'd always been there for him. He was more their parent than their mom was. Why was he still gone? Surely the cruise wouldn't last this long. Where _was _Donald?

He huddled in on himself and felt the old abandonment issues wrestle with his resentment against his mother. That was right. She'd left them there to rot. If it hadn't been for Uncle Donald, who knew what would've happened to them? Would they have grown up in an orphanage? Probably. And no thanks to the so-called "best mom", Della Duck.

Trust for him was hard-won. Everyone around here had earned his trust, save his mother. And he genuinely felt bad about what he'd done. He wasn't a monster. His mom had had no right to blow up like that.

Gyro had taken back the time tub, because of course he had. Louie wanted more than anything to escape the confines of his room. Everything and everyone grated on his nerves. The manor was too restricting.

He could run away, but then where would he get food and basic necessities? Besides, there was still that hurricane outside. No one ran away in a hurricane unless they wanted instant death. Louie wasn't that brave or foolhardy.

The door crept open and he growled, back to it.

"Whoever it is, go away," he snapped.

"Louie?" Della called.

"Where did you think I'd be?" Louie said from between gritted teeth. "You sent me here, remember?"

He bit back a nasty remark. Part of him wanted to curse her out and lash out at her because not only was she a good target, she was the reason their Uncle Donald had struggled for so long and so hard to raise them. She was the reason they hadn't grown up here, in the lap of luxury, because she'd had to run off to take the Spear. In fact, everything in their lives up until Uncle Scrooge had taken them in seemed to be _her _fault.

"I wanted to talk," she said. She sat beside him on the bed and he automatically moved over so they weren't touching. His rage and disgust were thick.

"Didn't you do enough of that?" he asked, his tone barbed. "I don't want to hear it. You have no right to lecture me on anything. You bailed on us. You're the reason Uncle Scrooge and Uncle Donald didn't talk for ten years. We could've grown up here. We could've been happy. But, no. You ditch us the first chance you get and then you're conveniently not here for ten years.

"And then you show up and you expect everyone to flock to you? Dewey's a soft touch. He's always been easy to trick. Huey-you appeal to his stupid Junior Woodchuck stuff and he's all over you. But me? I'm not buying it."

Louie straightened up and glowered at her. "Do you know what we did the first year we were here? After Uncle Donald and Scrooge made up? We spent a year trying to figure out what happened to you because no one would talk about you. Uncle Donald barely ever said your _name_."

Della faltered. She hadn't expected the vitriol, which was too bad, because he wasn't finished. She'd just have to wait.

"I think you're full of it. You pretend you're a good mom and you expect everyone to buy the act. That's all it is, an act."

"I know it is," Della said softly, surprising him. "And I'm sorry I wasn't here. I didn't know about Uncle Scrooge and Donald not talking for ten years. I assumed when you were growing up, that you were _here_."

"You were wrong," Louie told her coldly. "You were wrong about everything. You were wrong that I'd want you back or choose you over Uncle Donald. And you're wrong if you think you can be my mom."

"What...what happened while I was gone?"

"It all fell apart. Uncle Donald had to take odd jobs to keep us alive on his houseboat and we traveled all over so he could find work. We didn't even know about Uncle Scrooge and him being our uncle until a year ago."

"Why didn't you tell me about this?"

Louie looked her right in the eye and glared hatefully. "What makes you think you can waltz into our lives in the middle of everything and just pick up the pieces?"

His mother looked taken aback. "I...I didn't. I don't. Louie, I'm sorry. But you shouldn't have played around with the time stream. You could've gotten someone killed."

"And Uncle Donald should be the one reprimanding me, not you. Uncle Donald's our dad."

Della frowned. "I know. I'll talk to him as soon as he gets home. But...don't you want to trust me? Even a little? I know I missed a lot of stuff and I messed up, but I do love you and your brothers. I care about you, all of you. I thought we were getting along pretty well."

Louie scoffed. "That's because I'm good at grifting. Don't take it seriously."

"I see," Della said, rising. A mask fell over her features and she straightened up from the bottom bunk. He didn't miss her wincing, though she did her utmost to hide it.

"I'll leave you alone," she said.

"Good," he snapped and then, after she'd gone and closed the door, whispered it again. "Good."

He thought he'd feel better after spitting all that out at her. If anything, he felt worse. Yes, he had abandonment issues and yes, he resented what she'd done. He'd wanted to hurt her like she'd hurt them. But...he didn't want to lose her, either. It was all so complicated. That was part of why he was so upset with her. She'd left them once-what was to stop her from doing it again? And what if, this time when she did, it was his fault?

Louie swallowed hard and tears sprang to his eyes. He lay there for a while, in the darkness. No one disturbed him. The wind outside howled and he didn't think about anything for a long time. The ache in his chest wouldn't go away and the tears still slipped down his cheeks. He didn't want the comfort anyone could provide.

When he stopped crying, he stared out at the boarded up window. They'd managed to board it up before Launchpad had broken it instead. He could've gotten him killed. The last time that he'd almost gotten Launchpad killed, it'd been because he'd been concealing something too. Louie sighed.

"_I wonder where I learned _ _**that **__ from."_

Maybe he _was _the evil triplet. He sure felt like it. It was too late to call the words back and he didn't want to. He just wanted to be left alone.

* * *

Della Duck felt like she'd been sucker-punched in the gut. Why had no one told her how badly things had gone awry when she'd been gone? She'd assumed that the boys had been raised by both their uncles while she was gone. She didn't think Louie was lying about what had happened while she was away. That made it all the more painful.

Like her youngest son, she wanted to be left alone. Since Mrs. Beakley had said she wasn't cleaning up the mess Louie had created, Della did it, using it as something to take her mind off Louie's venom. Unfortunately, even while her hands were busy, her mind drifted.

Being a mother was so much harder than she'd thought it'd be. Being a mother to pre-teen boys was even worse. She sighed. She wanted to talk to Donald so badly that it competed with the ache Louie had caused and threatened to beat it out. She missed her twin something awful.

She'd thought he'd be here when she came back. How wrong she'd been. Della kept her head down. Despite what Mrs. Beakley had told her about reprimanding Louie to make sure he was a better kid in the future, Della didn't think it'd work. After all, she'd already proven she was a terrible mother.

Della sighed, tears pricking her eyes. She swiped at them. She was strong. And these Ducks didn't back down.

Why had Donald gone on a cruise without technology, anyway? Della knew that Huey's postcards hadn't reached him, which left her perplexed and a little worried. The boys had written it off, but she hadn't. She also had that vague sense in the back of her mind like something was wrong with Donald, but since she'd had it for so long on the moon, she'd learned to ignore it. Perhaps she shouldn't.

She knew one thing for certain. She was going to leave Louie alone for a while. She had no desire to be verbally flayed again. Once was quite enough, thank you.

"Am I really that bad a mother?" Della asked aloud.

"No, dear, just inexperienced," Mrs. Beakley answered, coming in to help her despite claiming that she wouldn't.

"Louie just basically told me off. Again."

"He's upset," Mrs. Beakley said and frowned. "You did leave him for ten years, Della."

"I know I did," Della groaned. "Why does everyone need to keep reminding me? I came back, didn't I?"

"But some wounds are slow to heal," Mrs. Beakley warned. "And sometimes, trust is hard to get back once it's lost. Give him time. Louie's more sensitive than he lets on."

"That's another thing," Della said. "You know my kids better than I do."

"Of course I do," Mrs. Beakley said primly. "I've been around them longer. Like I said, it takes time. You need to have patience. It can't all fall together at once. You've been trying to be their friend. You can't always be their friend and you certainly can't be friendly with them and discipline them at the same time."

Della nodded halfheartedly. She still felt like she'd screwed up tonight. Maybe there was no winning this situation.

"Don't worry," Mrs. Beakley said and squeezed Della's shoulder. "He'll come around."

"Maybe," Della said, but she was doubtful. Mrs. Beakley hadn't heard Louie earlier. Maybe she did know her kids better than Della did, but...Della was willing to bet that Louie wasn't going to take that grounding and dissolution of Louie, Inc. sitting still.

* * *

No, he definitely wasn't going to let this rest. He'd come up with something, a plan of attack. His mom might've won this round, but…

Louie sighed. What was the point? He huddled in his covers. They'd spent all that time trying to figure out what had happened to their mom and now that their mom was back, it was almost easier without her. It certainly was more familiar without her.

Heads he lost, tails he lost. No winning this situation.


	2. Chapter 2

Notes:

I don't think this is quite as good as the previous chapter. I wanted to write a little more, but eh.

* * *

Louie heard movement approaching the door and growled, anticipating his mother again. It wasn't. When he turned his head, he saw a smaller silhouette, one he recognized instantly. The tension eased out of him a little, though he remained sullen. With his arms folded across his chest, he glared at the doorway.

"Come to lecture me too? I know you took Mom's side. Is there something else in the JWG about how wrong I am?" Louie snapped.

"Of course not," Huey snapped back and sat beside his youngest brother on the bed. "I came in to check on you."

"Oh."

Louie sat up and the lower half of his beak quivered. He swiped at his face again and Huey put an arm about his shoulders. For a minute, they sat in companionable silence.

"And this is our room too," Huey said, turning his head to someone waiting in the hallway. He expected it to be Dewey, but when Huey beckoned, the figure didn't move. Louie frowned.

"Webby?" Louie called. The older girl eased her way into the room and joined them on the bed. It was getting crowded, but he thought he could cope. She looked cute in the flower child get-up.

"We were both worried about you," Huey said.

"And Dewey isn't?" Louie asked. "Lemme guess-he sided with Mom. Because he's a mama's boy."

"He's trying to talk to her," Huey said. "But not because he's defending her. He's defending _you_ to her."

"Yeah, right," Louie muttered.

"He is," Huey insisted.

Webby didn't speak; she just put a hand on Louie's. He turned to look at her and he wanted to smile, he did, but only the corners of his beak turned up and that might've had more to do with his crying spell than actual cheer. Still, he was glad they were here. He didn't feel quite so alone.

"I'm sorry, you guys," Louie said. "I didn't mean to make you blink out of existence. I thought, if I could only steal lost artifacts, it wouldn't affect the time stream. I was _trying _to be careful and it all spiralled out of control."

He frowned. "Just like all my Louie, Inc. stuff blew up in my face. And now I don't even have that because Mom took it away."

"You'll figure something out," Huey said.

It was hard to think of that when he felt so betrayed. He glanced over at his eldest brother.

"You will," Huey said gently.

"Why did Mom have to ground me? You saw Mrs. B and Uncle Scrooge. They were willing to forgive and forget," Louie complained.

"But Granny and Uncle Scrooge aren't your parents," Webby pointed out. "And Della's been trying so hard to be your friend."

Louie snorted. "Some friend she is, grounding me."

"But she's not a friend. She's not supposed to be," Huey said.

Louie scoffed, uncertain what to say to that beyond what he had. He folded his arms across his chest again, taking his hand out of Webby's reach, and curled up into a ball again with his hoodie pulled low over his face. Huey sighed.

"We should leave him alone," Huey decided. "But we'll be back."

"Of course you will," Louie muttered, but it was without rancor. "You live here."

Webby squeezed his arm and he watched her go. When the two left, they closed the door behind him and left him in the darkness. He wasn't sure he bought Huey's story about Dewey trying to talk to their mom, but then again, Huey was an awful liar. He just didn't see why Dewey should expend the effort, especially with how often Louie tricked him.

He sighed. It would be a long time until he could reasonably expect to fall asleep and the night threatened to loom, never quite ripening. He sprawled out on the bed with his hand dangling off the mattress. He didn't have the energy to turn on the light, anyway. Or maybe he did and he didn't want to use it. It might've been a little bit of both.

Sighing, Louie let his thoughts flow away from him. The time tub had been a good idea, but, like typical Louie stuff, it'd blown up in his face. And now he was being punished for it twice, as if seeing his family blink out of existence wasn't bad enough. He'd lost his mom twice and the second time would've been his fault. And then he'd pushed her away, but that, she'd deserved. Hadn't she?

He didn't know. He wanted to shut off his brain for a while and he rolled over, staring up at Dewey's bunk. He kicked it and scoffed. There was no way Dewey was defending Louie. He was probably fawning over their mother again. Typical Dewey.

* * *

"You could always suspend the grounding until after the expedition," Dewey suggested and Della shook her head. She'd been rather quiet since returning from Louie's room and judging by Huey's and Webby's glum expressions, Louie had not been in the greatest of moods with them either.

"I can't," she said. "That would be going back on my word. He needs to learn that his actions have consequences, serious ones that could hurt his family."

"But he knows that," Dewey protested. "He does."

"Until he's proven it to me, I'm not un-grounding him. I'm sorry, Dewey. That's my final word."

Dewey sighed, nodding as he continued cleaning up. They were all chipping in, despite the fact it'd been Louie's mess. He shook his head at his siblings as he rejoined them.

"Yeah, we didn't have much luck either," Huey said.

"And now we have to keep this whole treasure hunting trip a secret from him," Webby said.

"Maybe he won't notice?" Dewey said.

"In what world would he not notice?" Huey objected.

"Uh, this one. This world right here," Dewey said and Huey shook his head.

"No, he'll notice," Huey said. "I'll leave him my tablet. Maybe he'll at least be able to watch TV while we're gone. It's the best I can do."

"Maybe," Webby said uncertainly.

"And he needs to learn that his actions have consequences," Huey said, unconsciously mirroring their mother.

Webby cast a forlorn look up at the boys' room. "I guess, but I feel kinda rotten about it."

"It'll only for a little while," Huey said. "Louie's a quick study. Maybe too quick."

Webby's gaze drifted to Della and they all remembered what Louie had spat at their mother. It'd have to work itself out somehow. They couldn't fight Louie's battles for him, whether they wanted to or not.

* * *

Della waited until they were all asleep before poking her head into the boys' room. Even in his sleep, Louie looked grumpy and upset. Guilt pricked at her. Maybe she'd deserved the tongue lashing, but he'd deserved to be grounded and she was standing by that.

He didn't deserve to accompany them on their trip, either. Maybe that would help hammer the lesson home. It was necessary and it had to be done-didn't mean she liked it. But parenting wasn't all fun and games. (And again, she needed to have a long talk with Donald when he came home).

She settled into the living room and set up her favorite video game. Maybe it would help her take her mind off things, at least for now. Tomorrow would sort itself out. She didn't think Louie would take forever to come around.

Unless he did. But, no, she was being ridiculous. She curled up on the couch. She was so glad to be home, even if home had produced its own new headaches. She couldn't believe that her brother and Uncle Scrooge hadn't been talking for ten years. Why hadn't Uncle Scrooge or one of the kids mentioned it before now?

It explained their odd reaction to her appearing on their doorstep and why Louie had hidden behind Webby.

Man, she was going to have a laundry list of things to talk to Donald about when he got home. She wished he was home already.


End file.
